So the tagline of my site is something like “Just a guy trying to fly, both literally and figuratively”. This probably fits into the latter category.
Anyone who has ever read any of my blogs before knows that probably the biggest thing I struggle with is my weight. I’ve always been overweight, obese, or morbidly obese. In 2009 I tipped (shattered) the scales at probably close to 360-370 pounds. I stopped weighing myself after I hit 350 and had basically resigned myself to the fact that I was just fat. At some point that year I investigated weight loss surgery and opted to go in for the Lap Band procedure. My official starting weight was 358 lbs at my doctor’s office. They required me to lose 10% of my body weight before my surgery, which I did. I was in the 320’s when I had surgery in August of 2009. By early 2010, I was down to 276 or so pounds. And that’s where I bottomed out. I always knew that the Lap Band was a tool, not a solution. Like anything you can cheat around it, and I did. I slowly gained weight again and hovered for the past couple three years between 295 and 305. With dalliances down to 289 and up to 312.
I spent the entirety of 2012 training for and completing three half marathons. I ran the Portland, Seattle and Las Vegas Rock N Roll Half Marathons. And through all of that training and running, I didn’t lose an ounce. I didn’t gain an ounce either. But I did get some cool hardware, including this nifty Triple Crown Medal for completing three of their events in one year.
In 2013, I was pretty much a sloth. I did almost zero workouts with the exception of a couple of 5Ks and Sprint Distance Triathlons. I did not gain an ounce either. The ONE thing I did in 2013 was the Ultimate Reset through Beachbody. I’ve never done something that gave me such and “Ah-Ha” moment as that. That REALLY showed me that regardless of the quantity of food, if I’m not eating the RIGHT foods, nothing I could possibly do would make a difference. That was 21 days and through it all, I lost 22 pounds.
But then like anything else, I went back to what I used to eat and gained those 22 pounds back in short order. But since then I’ve really been researching what I want my food to look like at some point in the future. You might say I have paralysis through analysis. I’ve been researching the Paleo lifestyle for over a year now and I know that’s where I want to end up. There’s almost nothing there I don’t enjoy eating. There are a few things I would have to give up all together or really only make them a one or twice a year treat. But for the most part, Paleo is what I’m gearing up towards.
One of the problems with being nearly 300 pounds, is that even if you lose 20 pounds, you still feel like you have 60 or 80 pounds left to lose. It’s quite overwhelming …. Certainly not as overwhelming as when you have 160 pounds to lose, but still daunting to say the least! So I’ve embarked on another weight loss journey.
A little over a month ago, Teri & I started on 3010 Weight Loss For Life. I listen to KJR and the Bob Rivers Show in the morning. 3010 WLFL is one of the sponsors. On Bob’s show, I most closely identify with Joe. Not because he’s from Mississippi, but rather because for the 20+ years I’ve been listening to them, Joe has also struggled with his weight. As of this writing, Joe has lost a bit over 50 pounds with 3010 WLFL, and I’m always a sucker for a good sales pitch. So I went to 3010 to check them out. It annoyed me at first they wouldn’t tell me how much it cost over the phone. So I scheduled a consultation where they weighed me and did a body fat analysis. They went over the program, what it cost and how it works. I went home and told Teri about it and she also went up for a consultation. We made the decision to start the following week.
As near as I can tell its a ketogenic diet, basically meaning SUPER low carbohydrate diet so your body gets into a state of Ketosis. Ketosis is where instead of burning the carbohydrates you’re feeding your body for fuel, it burns your own fat stores for fuel. The Atkins diet relys heavily on this principle and it’s been a tried and true method of losing a lot of weight quickly for a very long time. I signed up for 18 weeks and Teri signed up for 14 weeks. The name “3010” comes from the fact that on average, women lose about 3 pounds per week, so in 10 weeks you lose 30 lbs. Men on average lose 5 lbs a week. So far that’s pretty close to true. I won’t talk about Teri’s weight loss, because that’s not polite, but she’s doing incredible with it! As of last night, 5 weeks in, I’m down 30 pounds. My official starting weight was 312 and I’m down to 282. Only 6lbs to get back to where I was after the lap band surgery!
Ive got 13 weeks left, and if I can average 3-4 lbs per week, I’ll lose between 39-52 more lbs. Which will be amazing! No one in the past 20 or so years has seen me below 266 lbs. That’s only 16 lbs away, or maybe a month or so from now. Last weekend we went outlet mall shopping, and I bought two new pairs of jeans, size 36. Considering when I started thinking about the Lap Band, I was in 44’s, that’s amazing. A lot of the 2XL shirts I bought last year are pretty loose on me. And others that have been tight since I bought them are starting to fit. Now the only frustrating thing is that so far, not too many people hav noticed I’ve lost any weight. Another problem when you have SOOOO much to lose is that you don’t look all that different for awhile. Some people that know what I’m doing have said I’m looking good, but I think they’re just being kind.
Like the Lap Band, I’m looking at 3010 WLFL as a tool. This won’t be how I eat forever, but when I’m done with this and weigh in the 220-230 range, and I transition to more of a Paleo lifestyle, IF I gain 15 pounds, I’ll only feel like I have 15 lbs to lose. Not 70 or 80. If I can maintain my weight as well as I have for the past few years, that will be a major win! I just need to be rid of this fat sooner rather than later so I can get on with my life and banish this daemon once and for all!